One for the Bumpy Ride!

The only certainty about running or working in a start-up is that one finds an uncertain situation round the corner very often.  When people say that ideas are worth only 1% and remaining 99% of the success relies heavily on the execution, unfortunately they are true. So if you think that you have a very good idea that can make the next Google, Flipkart, Amazon or Facebook, consider that it's just the beginning of a bumpy ride. What else one should have, apart from having a good idea, to create a good product? Lets explore.

In the quest for survival, a start-up faces several types of issues. The most of them are not directly related to the basic skill sets of the employees of the company. It requires one to think out of box or apply some quick fix. In my past 5 years of experience at a start-up, I have observed that the problems of one type or another keep popping up.  For example, initially we struggled to create an attractive GUI. Our product was good and feature sets were attracting all the right customer base, but we were failing at a good GUI. Once the GUI part was controlled by outsourcing the design part, other challenges popped up. These challenges were mainly related to product aesthetics, stability, customer support, finding bigger office, selecting manufacturing unit, cash-flow, vendor management and so on. Every time, we zeroed in on one key issue to fix, we got a new one. We always remained (and still is :) ) in the fire-fighting mode. Unfortunately, there is no generic solution that can be applied to all the problems. The frustrating rule of 3 is applicable on all types of start-ups. Everything is either three times more or three times longer - either one needs three times more capital than one planned for it, or it will take three times longer to reach the milestones, or it will take three times more sweat & tears that one is prepared for.

However one strong pattern has emerged. A start-up can survive - not just on good technology, huge cash pile, good product or strong customer base, but only by the never-say-never attitude of its employees & founders. Being one of the first employees of the company, I have the opportunity to work with many employees, and everyone has contributed in a unique fashion. People pushing the limits, solving a tough looking problem in a simple way, trying very hard and failing, doing everything to make it work. Most of them are still part of the company, and some have left, but the culture remains intact. We deal every problem with the same passion. Team work wins over hard times.

A start-up is defined by its founders & employees. Apart from the obvious focus on developing your product or service, you should also pay attention to your work culture. Always be cautious on hiring a new person and don't hesitate to let one go, if he/she doesn't fit into. Keep looking for diverse skill sets and fresh ideas to welcome on board. As you grow, make sure that your employees also grow and the culture of solving a difficult problem remains intact, because as one has rightly said success is a journey and not a destination. And the journey to convert your good idea into a good product is not possible without passionate team members.

Reference:

• 'The frustrating rule of 3' - Ganesh Krishnan, founder of Tutorvista.com
• Image courtesy of Stuart Miles at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

The very first brand!

The biggest irony of a start-up eco-system is that everybody wants to go to heaven but no body wants to die. It all sounds very exciting to work at a challenging place, but sacrificing the current salary from the stable job is not easy. The features of the new product sounds too appealing and fitting ones requirements, but most of the customers are not very comfortable with risking hard-earned money on some geeks. Even the investors face the same dilemma of choosing the potential start-up from the huge list of funding applications they get on the daily basis.

Apart from building the dream product or service in limited budget, all the founders have to manage the daunting situation of attracting their first few employees, the first set of customers and the first angle investors. Most of the founders consider their business idea to be the first major brand that attracts the attention. However, the fact is that the very first brand a start-up has is its founders. 

The potential employees, customers and investors look out for the trust-worthy founders who can actually make the idea work. There is always a fine line between genius and insanity, and in a way, the traits of the founders tell a lot about the future of a start-up. Here are some pseudo v/s real traits of this first brand.

• Academic record v/s Street Smartness

To larger extend, no educational system measures street smartness very accurately. Don't get carried away with the multiple degrees or academic records a founder has. Always look for the basic street smartness that is needed to stir the company from the initial garage days to a successful company.

• Experienced v/s novice

Age is another deceiving factor when it comes to evaluating the capability of the founders. One school of thought supports energetic, young, fresh out of college guys while other vouches for the experienced lot. A good founder is always ready to learn yet confident enough to articulate his/her ideas to the world. Listen to the founder to know more about this.

• Speaker v/s Listener

Founders are generally full of ideas and always ready to pitch in the unique business idea that they are having. However the real trait is to have good listening capability. An idea goes through lots of improvisation on the execution lane. Unless the founders are good listener to customer needs, market demands and technical challenges, they may probably fail to make necessary amendments to their ideas.  

• Dreamer v/s Visionary 

Most of the literature on start-ups and the celebrity founders advocate dreamers. However, being a dreamer doesn't take anyone closer to success. The real difference comes from converting a dream into a vision. A clear vision that can lead set of people to make thing happen. Ultimately it's not just about thinking big, it's about making it work on a grand scale.

• Business sense v/s Common Sense

Many revolutionary start-ups are not actually built on contemporary business sense. Let it be the product features, pricing, payment models or customer interactions most of the successful start-up's business models could not have made perfect business sense initially. By sticking to the common sense, they have made all the differences. The same is true for a founder. It doesn't require an MBA degree to establish a good business, but common sense will do just fine.

• Creator v/s Destroyer

Creativity & entrepreneurship are generally considered similar. A person who is good at creating a product or service is treated as a good candidate for a successful start-up founder. In a start-up journey, failure is the only constant companion one has. One may require to scrap the idea and start afresh or look for an alternative. While evaluating a founder, always look for his or her ability to destroy something that he or she has created. Moving on is the only survival instinct that keeps a start-up floating in the initial days.

• Junoon v/s Jugad

Junoon or passion is another misleading trait that is connected with a potential founder, however the key trait is to have Jugad or resourcefulness. More than 50% of the hurdles one comes across in running a start-up is non-technical and not related to the central business idea. Be it hiring or finding a suitable office space, the most time consuming problems of a start-up require deep out-of-the box and quick thinking. Passion alone is not helpful here. One needs to be extremely resourceful to make it work.

For a very long time, the founders of a start-up remain the only brand of the company. Gradually the products and services start speaking for the company and the founders become mere brand ambassadors. The transition from being the only brand of the company to be one of the brand ambassadors of the company is the true measurement of the success of a founder.

It's all worth it!

There is a saying that time & tide wait for none. Time, while continuously aging, leaves several lessons behind. Sometimes it takes a long time to understand all the lessons. For example, couple of years back, I was struggling with my team-mate and manager to fix an issue in the system installed at the site. We were not able to understand the issue and the system was down due to that. The site was somewhere on the outskirts of the city. We were not able to find the issue with the system as well as a decent place to grab a bite. It was a long & hot day. The ordeal continued the next day also, and finally we could figure out the root cause, something beyond our control. However we suggested some external patch and the system worked. The extended working hours were common on the project. Our customer had launched a new building project and our solution was part of it. So we were almost grilled day in & out to ensure that the system would remain up and running.

Years went by and very recently, I was sitting in the comforts of a five star hotel. I was in the audience section and the same customer was part of an ongoing panel discussion. In the fully-packed conference room, our customer was telling about the future of buildings, constructions & home automation. Out of the blue, he recommended features of our company's product and its relevance to the Indian home automation segment. I was dumb-folded on this open support. It's always great to hear your customer recommending your product/services to others. I also realized the golden moment was result of the hard-work not just by my team, but everyone involved in the project, right from the marketing to the logistics guy. 

It is very common to get a angry or dissatisfied customer in an early stage start-up. Your product is still not fully functional, it has been sold in the PoC stage, the customer is expecting some other features... There could be thousands of reasons beyond your control and you may left with annoying the small (or in same cases only) customer base you have. The best way to handle this situation is to face the issue, listen and try to understand your customer's concern. The key is not to give-up. Keep trying to fix the issue and finally fix it. Be genuinely interested in customers' issues and make sure that your product/services are upgraded to their needs. Now it may sound like a very obvious advise, but in case of a start-up, it is the most important one. You may be designing something really cool, but if it doesn't solve the purpose of your customer, be prepared to take an alternate route. Be flexible and stay focused on the customer. 

There are no 'bad' customers, only 'good' teachers when it comes to an early stage start-up. Even we have improvised upon several features and processes due to the tough customers. You will realize the worth of your efforts years later when the brand is established. Always remember that there are many start-ups which struggle to get even one customer. Feel blessed to have one and make sure that you retain the customer. 

If 2014 has been a tough years for your start-up, stay focused on customers' needs. And if you have done a decent business in 2014, stay committed to the customer base you have developed. Stay focused & stay committed because it's all worth it :)